This Wednesday, several verbal clashes took place on the premises of the Kosovo Assembly between opposition MPs and representatives of the Vetëvendosje Movement.
Të lidhura
None found
Acting Justice Minister Donika Gërvalla, who had entered the chamber for the “Compatriots in the Assembly” event, called on opposition MPs to attend the meetings convened by LVV to reach a political agreement.
“Come to the meeting,” Gërvalla told the MPs, who were chanting, “Call the session!”
There were also clashes between PDK MP Ganimete Musliu and LVV MPs Arbërie Nagavci and Egzon Azemi.
Musliu called them “supercriminals” and repeated the demand for the session to resume. She and AAK MP Albana Bytyqi threw papers toward Nagavci, while at one point Bytyqi was seen pushing her.
Other clashes also involved acting president Albulena Haxhiu, LVV MP Ardian Gola, and PDK MPs Vlora Çitaku, Eman Rrahmani and Blerta Deliu-Kodra.
The dispute over resuming the session comes after the 30-day deadline for constituting the Assembly expired.
The constituent session began on August 6, but the Assembly failed to complete the election of its speaker and deputy speakers. The process remained suspended due to the lack of a political agreement.
However, Gërvalla said LVV’s interpretation is that the session must be concluded within 30 days of its commencement.
PDK and AAK have asked Avni Dehari, who chairs the constituent session, to convene its continuation, while the Vetëvendosje Movement has insisted that a political agreement must first be reached.
Naim Jakaj of the Kosovo Law Institute called the demand for the session to continue “justified,” despite the expiry of the 30-day deadline.
“The fact that the constitutional deadline of 30 days has already been breached does not mean that the process should stop. On the contrary, after the deadline has been breached, the obligation to constitute the Assembly remains, and MPs must complete this process without further delay,” Jakaj told Radio Free Europe.
He explained that the Constitution does not provide for the Assembly to be dissolved automatically after the 30-day deadline has passed.
“The session must continue exactly where it was interrupted, and the Assembly must proceed with the election of the speaker and deputy speakers. Negotiations on electing the president are a separate constitutional process and cannot be made a prerequisite for constituting the Assembly,” Jakaj said.
The final results of the June 7 elections were certified on July 8, while the 30-day deadline for constituting the Assembly expired on August 7.
For this very reason, 14 civil society organizations, led by AVONET, have petitioned the Constitutional Court.
The head of PDK’s parliamentary group, Arian Tahiri, said his party is seeking to make the Assembly functional and protect the constitutional order.
“If all options within the Assembly are exhausted, we will take further courageous steps to protect the state,” Tahiri said.
AAK MP Besnik Tahiri also said his party would not allow what he described as “the violation of citizens’ rights.”
After the speeches, PDK and AAK MPs left the chamber and continued to remain in the Assembly lobby.
Shortly before they left, two MPs from the Vetëvendosje Movement also entered the chamber. MP Vigan Qorrolli said they were attending the event with the diaspora, while describing the opposition’s action as “permissible.”
However, Qorrolli reiterated LVV’s position that a political agreement must first be reached on continuing the constitution of the Assembly and forming the government.
PDK said all parties had been invited to attend in the chamber, but LDK MPs were not seen there.
Meanwhile, Dehari has said the session should not continue without a political agreement among the parties.
At the heart of the political deadlock remains the issue of electing the next president.
The Vetëvendosje Movement has called for a broader political agreement and a consensus, nonpartisan presidential candidate, while LDK has demanded that the post go to it.
PDK has insisted that constitutional procedures must first be respected and the constitution of the Assembly completed. AAK, meanwhile, has demanded compliance with constitutional deadlines and blamed Vetëvendosje for the institutional deadlock.
The European Union has called on Kosovo’s political parties to reach an agreement on a joint presidential candidate as soon as possible, warning that delays in forming the institutions could hinder reforms and affect access to EU funds./ RFE
